T21 Transitional Dovetailed Jointer Plane
Boring and counter boring the hole in the bun blank for the fixing stud.
Cutting a coarse thread for the stud.
Once the blanks have been cut, counter bored and tapped they are then ready for turning. This picture shows part of the turning as the first part (no picture) was turned on a mandrill and once I have a circle I can turn it round and secure it in a three jaw chuck for the other radius. Sadly I still don’t have a wood turning lathe, which is something I must be looking into.
Making patterns for the bun profile. Although there is a science in proportions and curves which I know nothing about, I am happy to manage on my instinct. I think I am a good guesser.
Once I am satisfied with the profile I can check the contours with the bun whilst being turned. Notice that the bun is being turned on a mandrill which fits the bun’s internal thread.
Experimenting with some bun forms. I elected to use the right hand one. I wanted to keep the profile low because with wooden planes you are already starting in an elevated position.
This is the picture that some of you have been waiting for.
It is the removal of the material from the plane’s throat. This is only the first stage and following procedures seem to have been mislaid so I will have to move on.
Whilst I am in this set up I need to fit my bed pads. It had been my intention to keep the blade bedded entirely on wood. However, as this particular wood is quite soft I thought two brass pads would help prevent any wear or deformation at this critical point.
The bed pads mentioned above.
Drilling for the spiders for the bespoke brass lever cap fittings. Normally an indexing table would have been appropriate, but the CNC is nicer and quicker. (I have used a reject No 982 bottom as a clamping plate – very useful.)
A quick visual revision of the work in the throat area.
The plane’s sole is usually skimmed a number of times throughout the making process as whilst removing material and working there will be fresh settlement.
With most of the work done in the plane’s throat then the mouth can be routed out.
Karl,
I am probably becomming a real nuisance with all of my questions. Sorry but here comes another one.
I have always wanted to ask you how you would approach the flattening of the T21′s sole ?
I can now see quite clearly from your photos that you mill the sole flat but is there any other unseen work like the scraping down of high spots etc ? Or due to the nature of a wooden bodied plane is there any need to go any further than the mill ? ( Knowing you and knowing your work I think it is probably safe to say that you won’t be pointlessly rubbing the plane up and down a piece of glass paper ! That particular method would result in a very nice canoe but a pretty damn poor plane)
Archie.
Comment by Archie — January 1, 2010 @ 7:38 pm
Hi Karl,
Firstly,Happy New Year!
Now that these beauties are complete do you have a price for them?
Cheers mate
Black
Comment by Adrian Baird Ba Than — January 1, 2010 @ 7:48 pm
Whoa whoa !!!
I can’t believe I did not spot it earlier. I was looking at the adjuster (Because you know I have a thing for adjusters) and I thought that has a spigot instead of a banjo !!! Now then now then this puts another whole new dimension on things. Bevel down without a chipbreaker ! Genius. I would be very very interested to know if there are advantages to that little feature ?
Archie.
Comment by Archie — January 1, 2010 @ 8:03 pm
Hi Archie
Think you answered your own question. Wooden planes are never going to be very stable but they are very nice to use. The plane will require care and attention from its user and it will probably become necessary for some flattening several times over the life of the plane. I have noticed one manufacturer of transitional planes had even made a special aid for the truing of the plane’s sole – this was merely a piece of cast iron with a machined surface and some wedges to put tension to a piece of sanding belt. Of course I can send a plane out and the moment it leaves me it is going to be pretty damn true, but the rest is up to nature and the care it receives.
k
Comment by admin — January 1, 2010 @ 8:44 pm
Hi Black
How much were you going to spend on that car?
The short answer is I still haven’t priced it. I will e-mail you over the weekend.
k
Comment by admin — January 1, 2010 @ 8:45 pm
Hi Archie
Bevel down without a chipbreaker means I don’t require a nut, or a slot in the blade so no banjo required. In the blade I have three 1/4″ dia holes pitched at 5/16″. The travel of the spigot is 7/16″ to provide an overlap from one hole to another.
k
Comment by admin — January 1, 2010 @ 8:51 pm
Karl,
Yeah yeah I know how it works. What I mean is. You have ventured somewhere where other mortals have not !
And what I was asking was. Is there any benefit to the user from having the blade presented in that particular format ? I.e. are there advantages to not having a chipbreaker ?
Archie.
Comment by Archie — January 1, 2010 @ 8:58 pm
Hi Archie
Sorry to be boring but I shall go back to the beginning. Whether the bevel is up or down is irrelevant as long as the common angle, or the angle of attack, is the same. This observation was quickly noticed by myself when demonstrating my planes in the earlier days, in Munich at Exempla 98. I found when doing the demonstrations on some very difficult tests that the plane performing the best was my improved pattern A11 mitre plane (bevel up). This plane has a bed angle of 20 deg, which is the norm for this plane. With a honing angle of 30 deg, it adds up to 50 deg. There you have it, that is a York pitch. Having impressed myself with this I couldn’t wait to get back to England to set to work on what was to become the No 98 plane also bevel up. This plane has proved to be a very good performer on all the nasty stuff. No doubt you have since noticed similarities of its design have appeared in other planes (not just mine!).
Yes, I think you are right about me being the first to make a bevel down plane without a chipbreaker (though I have not researched this). The principal of the working is still the same as the No 98 which ever way the bevel is. The most important factor here is the cutting angle and the angle of attack. Very basic really, isn’t it? I don’t know why chipbreakers appeared as they have done but I am interested to hear anyone argue their case.
The first bevel down plane I made was the 11-s, and since that appeared I have noticed bevel down planes appearing from other makers without chipbreakers. So it looks like it has appealed to others as well.
In conclusion there is no advantage to not having a chipbreaker, but there is no dis-advantage. No point in putting unneccesary costs into a plane. I feel that the technical geometry is going beyond the scope of this discussion.
Comment by admin — January 2, 2010 @ 11:04 am
Hi Karl,
First of all, it is looking great. Before I read your caption, I had chosen the same bun profile as you; don’t know what that says.
I have long suspected that the origin of chip breakers lies in the more accurate description – blade stiffeners, which I generally prefer – although this clearly does not apply in the case of your Norris style infill planes.
You may have noticed from the current issue that the 982 review is in the next issue of F&C.
Will ring you next week,
Jim
Comment by Jim — January 3, 2010 @ 12:05 pm
Hi Jim
Thanks for the comments. Looking forward to this review coming out at last!
k
Comment by admin — January 3, 2010 @ 12:39 pm
Your work is awesome I just love the way the rosewood contrasts with the maple
Comment by Dave — June 29, 2010 @ 9:42 pm
Hi Dave (Mr D. Odorifera)
I love your compliments, keep posting.
k
Comment by admin — August 22, 2010 @ 10:15 am